Girl Scouts gather to learn confidence

The lesson for the nearly 200 Girl Scouts who flocked to the Nicholls State University campus on Saturday was simple — make your life what you want it to be.

Matthew AlbrightStaff Writer

The lesson for the nearly 200 Girl Scouts who flocked to the Nicholls State University campus on Saturday was simple — make your life what you want it to be.The scouts, from fifth through ninth grade, came from 23 parishes in southeast Louisiana. They were in Thibodaux for one of three “journey initiatives” hosted by the Girl Scouts of Louisiana East, titled “It’s Your Story — Tell It!”“We are here to teach these girls to be confident,” said Jill Pollard, vice president of program and volunteerism. “We want them to know that they can become leaders and achieve great things if they put their mind to it.”The event’s special guest was Gayle Benson, wife of New Orleans Saints and Hornets owner Tom Benson. Benson told the girls that they could succeed in life by setting goals and working hard to achieve them. “No one knows what your destiny in this world is,” Benson said. “And you should never let anyone make that destiny for you.” Benson also encouraged the girls to be active outside of school or work, in both hobbies or activities that make them happy and in volunteer work.“You will not be truly happy until you reach out and help someone,” Benson said.After a group photo with Benson, the girls scattered throughout campus for various events. The Saints and Hornets brought their youth activity camps, including an inflatable obstacle course, football tosses and agility drills. Nicholls professors, Lafourche sheriff’s deputies and other experts hosted classes on bullying, healthy eating and building self-confidence.Various Nicholls recruiters were also out in force, handing out information about scholarships and enrollment. Balaji Ramachandran, head of the Department of Applied Sciences, was trying to recruit girls to join the school’s geomatics and petroleum-services programs. “We’re really looking for women to come to these programs,” Ramachandran said. “There’s a lot of opportunity for women in these fields, and many people don’t think that.”Ramachandran said Nicholls has six women in the geomatics program and 10 in its petroleum services program. That worries him.“We know that girls do well in K-12 with math and science, but the transition never gets made to higher ed,” he said. “We want girls to know that they are needed in these fields too.” Pollard said that’s one of the big reasons the scouts chose to have the event at Nicholls’ campus.“A lot of these girls don’t see themselves going to college, or if they do they’re intimidated by it,” Pollard said. “We want them to get familiar with a university and know that this is something they can do and be confident with.”

Staff Writer Matthew Albright can be reached at 448-7635 or at matthew.albright@dailycomet.com.